The Daughter felt sick when she first realized her dad's caregiver had been stealing his money.
Anyone who wants to hire a caregiver should do a criminal record check and continue to check periodically to see whether the worker's status has changed. Court records that show basic information about arrests and convictions are available online for public review at in most jurisdictions says California Elder Abuse Attorney Steven C. Peck.
The Daughter's dad, was physician for more than 50 years, delivering babies, setting broken bones, even calling on sick folks at home. Raised in poverty himself, he cared for people who had no money and was known to take a pie or a chicken in payment.
When Dad lost his short-term memory, his children hired a caregiver so he could continue to live at home. One day last fall, for no particular reason, Daughter was going through Dad's mail and noticed an unusual number of credit card purchases for gasoline.
Daughter reported the card stolen. Something made her decide to check her dad's bank account. There were dozens of cash withdrawals, a couple of hundred dollars at a time, and checks made to the caregiver.
Police arrested caregivers and charged her with 20 counts of fraudulent signature, seven counts of credit-card fraud and one count each of first-degree theft, first-degree criminal mistreatment and first-degree forgery. She pleaded guilty to charges of first-degree forgery, first-degree theft and two counts of second-degree forgery.
Just how widespread elder financial abuse may be is difficult to say. Elder Law Attorney Steven Peck says there are many ways to take money from vulnerable elderly people -- everything from insurance scams to shoddy building repair -- and a number of different agencies may be involved in prosecuting such crimes.
The $10,000 or more that Daughter estimates her dad lost is a tiny minute fraction of the pot of money stolen from elders every year in the United States.
"It's a huge issue," Peck says.
Daughter said she hired caregiver on the basis of a recommendation from someone she trusted. She didn't do a background check or consult the public court records. If she had, she would have seen items that could have been a red flag. Court records show caregiver had a history of credit problems, and she pleaded guilty to second-degree child neglect in 2001.
Daughter and others who hire people off the street need to be especially careful because there is no state certification process for people who do in-home care, in California and most jurisdictions in the United States.
"You don't have to be a certified nursing assistant or have any (medical) training," Elder Law Lawyer Peck indicates.
Please contact your state legislatures and demand that the set licensing standards for caregivers to prevent similar thefts, because the need for home-care services will soar over the coming years as baby boomers retire and become medically needy.
"It's going to affect us all as a generation," "if we don't do something to protect ourselves from this predatory menace."
Reach Steven Peck toll free at 1.866.999.9085 and visit us online at www.premierlegal.org.
